Well, your criteria for supporting with video evidence will mean that every dang street corner, and maybe every street light would have to have multiple cameras trained in every which direction.
Well, your criteria for supporting with video evidence will mean that every dang street corner, and maybe every street light would have to have multiple cameras trained in every which direction.
Or we can address the underlying problems in our system and culture.
Of course, the video evidence criteria I laid out would be an uncommon scenario, but could certainly happen in the case of a shooting in a mall or any shooting where the perpetrator is apprehended by any person without leaving the view of security cameras.
I’m fully aware my views would exclude the death penalty in many cases where we can be reasonably assured the defendant is guilty. That’s the point. There have been too many cases where we were reasonably assured the defendant was guilty, but they weren’t guilty. There are systemic problems that need to be addressed. Until they are, I want a massive buffer between the state and execution. It’s a greater injustice to punish an innocent man than to let a guilty man go free. And we’re not even talking about letting anyone go free. Just not executing them – the most extreme and final act of punishment we can inflict.
Wait a minute. When you speak of the video evidence criteria are you not going against the deep flakes software where someone complicit in the crime could alter the video as part of mall video for example?
"the most important difference is that the technology has the potential to allow people with little skill or time required to produce videos where someone convincingly appears to be doing and saying things they didn’t do or say. That’s new and that’s dangerous."
I addressed “real time” scenarios in a follow up comment. And, to be fair to me, eyewitness identification procedures would definitely be an issue in your example of someone surviving a shooting and pointing the finger at a suspect, if I understand the scenario you’re putting forward.
I would consider a guilty plea to be a recorded confession for these purposes. I did not think that was what you meant by “verified by the defense.”
I forgot that was you.
I would certainly consider that proof beyond a reasonable doubt and would agree with a a guilty verdict. Until we address the systemic problems in our criminal justice system though, I would like to see a higher and more objective evidentiary standard for the death sentence. Death is irrevocable. A wrongly-convicted person sentenced to prison can, at least in some ways, be restored.
Since the death penalty is rarely sought for rape cases without murder or attempted murder, it probably wouldn’t be an issue in the spring break case you brought up (I’m not familiar with it, so forgive me if it was actually sought). But I would like to see the death penalty sought for rape more often, and this case is definitely an interesting one. I would have some questions and concerns, but I may personally approve of a death sentence given the circumstances and evidence you outlined.
Not sure what the law says in Panama concerning intervening in a crime in progress. Pretty sure failing to intervene in most crimes is not unlawful anywhere in the US, but I would condemn those present in the most grave terms. They should be persistently shamed and ridiculed by society for the rest of their lives.
On a personal note, I feel like I should have given you more credit for being way ahead of the pack on this issue. It seems like most people are just sticking their head in the sand. I respect your views on this problem, even if we end up disagreeing on exactly how we should be handling it.
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Bet your butt I was thinking about deepfakes as I wrote that.
There’s a cat and mouse game between deepfake technology and deepfake detection technology. The most sophisticated deepfake at any given time should be able to be identified given enough time passes after it was produced to let detection techniques catch up (maybe a year or two, probably less most of the time). This is something law enforcement, prosecutors, and defense lawyers should be thinking about and start guarding against now.That year or two timeframe is another good reason to not be in too much of a hurry to execute someone.
We’re not at the point yet where any video is just as likely to be fake as it is to be real, but we’ll have to cross that bridge when we get there.
I was just referencing the rape case as it was actually filmed by a national syndicated news outlet and withheld. The political talk shows were all over it and Panama City has now new spring break rules for their beaches that do not allow alcohol during spring break. The business owners excoriated the news outlet for loss of revenue while the rapes beyond what I reported continued until the alcohol restriction was enforced. The businesses were more concerned about the bottom line than a woman's right to not be raped.I addressed “real time” scenarios in a follow up comment. And, to be fair to me, eyewitness identification procedures would definitely be an issue in your example of someone surviving a shooting and pointing the finger at a suspect, if I understand the scenario you’re putting forward.
I would consider a guilty plea to be a recorded confession for these purposes. I did not think that was what you meant by “verified by the defense.”
I forgot that was you.
I would certainly consider that proof beyond a reasonable doubt and would agree with a a guilty verdict. Until we address the systemic problems in our criminal justice system though, I would like to see a higher and more objective evidentiary standard for the death sentence. Death is irrevocable. A wrongly-convicted person sentenced to prison can, at least in some ways, be restored.
Since the death penalty is rarely sought for rape cases without murder or attempted murder, it probably wouldn’t be an issue in the spring break case you brought up (I’m not familiar with it, so forgive me if it was actually sought). But I would like to see the death penalty sought for rape more often, and this case is definitely an interesting one. I would have some questions and concerns, but I may personally approve of a death sentence given the circumstances and evidence you outlined.
Not sure what the law is in Panama concerning intervening in a crime in progress. Pretty sure failing to intervene in most crimes is not unlawful anywhere in the US, but I would condemn those present in the most grave terms. They should be persistently shamed and ridiculed by society for the rest of their lives.
On a personal note, I feel like I should have given you more credit for being way ahead of the pack on this issue. It seems like most people are just sticking their head in the sand. I respect your views on this problem, even if we end up disagreeing on exactly how we should be handling it.
According to the Chief of Police in my town, after intervening in a criminal situation years ago, I was told that Ok does have a law on the books that says if you can stop a crime your obligated to do so. That was in the early 80's, and laws change so that may not be pertinent now. Tort laws may prevent that as well. Don't know.
This is just a good discussion. Carry on.
This guy got cover.
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